The I In Team
by Cella N
Summary: Ishida manages to impede Ulquiorra to kidnap Orihime. They initiate a partnership which has surprising results. ORIHIME. URYUU. What would you do if you had a second chance at life?


**Title:** The I In Team  
**Author:** Cella  
**Fandom:**BLEACH  
**Ship:** Ishida/Orihime yay!  
**Rating:** Teen  
**General Summary:** _Ishida manages to impede Ulquiorra to kidnap Orihime. They initiate a partnership which has surprising results. _ORIHIME. URYUU. What would you do if you had a second chance at life?  
**Spoilers:** Up to where Orihime leaves the SS for the second time, AU loosely after that. Let's say…chapter 227 and a bit of 233&234.  
**Dedications:** To Seren, because I don't need a reason to write her fics, I just love it.  
**A/N:** This was inspired mostly by the person who RP's Ishida over at sagesofchaos. (I play Orihime. Hee!) It just so happened that two IshiHime fans play Ishida and Orihime. The WAFF is imminent. But we enjoy it a lot. Orihime is oblivious and makes Ishida stammer a lot. I love that! Oh, yeah, this is AU. I was wondering what could happen if Orihime had exited the tunnel connecting the SS and the human world before Ulquiorra arrived. I made her a bit more strong for this. Enjoy. This is un-betaed and any mistakes are to be blamed on my tiredness.

**The I In Team**

_Everybody is fighting now. This is it, this is our big fight,_ Orihime thought, running down the tunnel, the two Shinigami at her side. They were reaching the exit, Orihime could almost _taste_ it there, right in front of her. It was her imminent exit. Beyond that point there would only be battle, and blood, and tears, and pain. She doubted she would survive herself, but she _was_ stronger than before. She had Rukia to thank for that.

The blood in her veins was humming with anxiousness. _So this is what being a warrior feels like,_ she thought, unconsciously flexing her fingers in her run towards the exit. _Almost there…_

The change in the spiritual power was sudden, and Orihime almost lost her pacing in her efforts not to choke. There was something utterly wrong with that reiatsu. She addressed herself to the Shinigami that escorted her:

"Something is wrong. Hurry." One of them grabbed her hand, and flashed out of there in less than ten steps. 

Thankfully, this time they didn't end up suspended in thin air when they exited. Orihime wasn't sure if that was so bad, considering who was waiting for them on the other side.

She remembered him from the first fight with the Allankar. He was the one who had said she and Sado were trash. He was the one who had barely lifted his hand against them, yet Orihime had felt his power.

And right now, it seemed to triplicate.

"Just two escorts from the Soul Society? How unimportant you must seem to them," Ulquiorra said softly. "Less effort for me."

The Shinigami that had her hand was the first to perish, in a blur of screams and flaring reiatsu. Orihime's hand still tingled from where the now dead Shinigami had held her. It made the whole situation more sinister. She turned towards the other Shinigami, fully aware of the fear showing in her eyes. "Please, run away!"

"But--!" he tried protesting, but then Ulquiorra was there again.

Orihime was alone. Alone, and scared, and probably incapable of moving a finger. She hadn't felt so breatheless since her last accidental meeting with Kuchiki Byakuya.

"Aizen requests your presence. I am here to take you to him unhurt, woman," Ulquiorra started. "You will say yes. If you answer in any other way…I will not hurt _you_. But I will hurt your friends."

Orihime's eyes widened, and her heart stopped beating for a fraction of a second. He noticed. She felt for other reiatsu, for a sign of anyone else. Everyone was fighting. There was already blood. There was already loss. Hers would make no difference.

"Well?" Ulquiorra asked, smirking as he advanced towards her. He grabbed her shoulder, and Orihime stood, limp and afraid for the life of her friends.

An arrow so familiar, so very familiar, skimmed Ulquiorra's mask.

"You will not _touch_ her," came a voice she had started to miss those last months.

Ulquiorra sniffed the air, "You're not a Shinigami," he acknowledge. 

"You still haven't let go of Inoue-san." Another arrow which Ulquiorra dodged. "That is a mistake on your part."

Ulquiorra tilted his head: "Really? I think you're barely a menace. So far you haven't hit me once."

One more arrow, and all Orihime could hear was his voice, not seeing him, her back to his face. "What makes you think I haven't failed on purpose?" he questioned.

Another arrow. And this one hit target. The target it turned out, was the hand Ulquiorra still had on her shoulder. Orihime squeaked when the arrow passed her own arm, hitting the Allankar with force and speed and precision. The Allankar _snarled_, launching himself at his attacker, forgetting all about Orihime. She finally turned around now, not to observe the newcomer, but to watch the fight and see if she could help. 

Ulquiorra stopped in midair, then launched himself upwards, where he hovered. He was tilting his head, listening to something. _Is he talking to Aizen?_ Orihime asked herself. The answer came in the form of Ulquiorra's smirk down at them. He pinned Orihime under his gaze.

"We will continue this," he said to her. Then, to them, "The three of us will."

There was an opening, a breach in the sky, and Ulquiorra climbed inside. There was another arrow thrown at him, but whether it hit target or not, Orihime didn't know, for the gate was closed again. _Now_ she turned around, and looked.

_Thump._

Her heart rate wasn't returning to normal any time soon. He was, for lack of better words, _glorious_. Not even seeing Ichigo release bankai had this sort of reaction on her. She guessed it also had to do with the fact that she hadn't seen him in so long, when he suddenly disappeared from school, not returning for weeks. She wondered if he had received all those phone calls she had made from a phone cabin, some in the middle of the night when she had been restless with pure worry, and sometimes after school, when all she wanted was to ask if he was alright again.

He looked basically the same. More or less nothing had changed. The same Quincy suit, the same flowing short cape, same everything. His gaze was still on the sky, where Ulquiorra had disappeared a minute ago. His jaw seemed harder, more angles to his face. His eyes more tired, more harsh, harder. His lips formed a thin line, and if she continued looking down, she could see his gloved (his glove was back!) hand tightening around the bow. And the bow looked different by a bit. Larger, more frightening, more powerful looking. He tore his gaze from the sky, and looked at her, his head seeming to just snap in her direction.

_Thump, thump._

The hardness around his eyes softened, and the tight around the bow loosened a bit. He pushed his glasses up his nose, and the familiarity of it all made Orihime, who was overly emotional after the encounter with the Allankar, want to just cry in happiness.

"Are you alright, Inoue-san?" he asked, blinking in concern.

Orihime couldn't answer verbally, but she _did_ practically run into his arms, throwing her hands around his neck and hugging him. "Ishida-kun!" she exclaimed, her voice happy and tearful. "Ishida-kun, you're back," she whispered.

There were hands, awkward, hesitant hands, going around her waist. Then she was pushed into his body as he returned the hug, and Orihime thought she could just die of happiness.

"I'm so glad you're back…"

------------

Orihime ran down the streets, thrills going through her body, courtesy of the post-battle state of mind. She glanced at her comrade through the corner of her eyes. He had been magnificent in battle, and he was magnificent out of it, right now, as they were running towards where the major battles had occurred. Ready to cure whoever.

Orihime had helped him her share, putting up shields that blocked the attacks of the coming Allankar. And Ishida…well, the enemies never managed to get close to Orihime without having an arrow through their bodies. At one point, the Allankar had realised that Orihime was untouchable, so they went all out with attacking Ishida. But he received much the same protection he received, only in stead of arrows, Orihime just send her shields in front of him, blocking any sword or punch. He had terminated one Allankar, and left the other drying, choking in his own blood. She had never seen Ishida's eyes glower like that before. She had never seen him fight so ferociously, act so _possessive_, attacking anyone that came within ten feet of Orihime. She had no idea what had happened to him during the absence, but something had definitely changed him.

Orihime glanced, and realised that her comrade wasn't following her anymore. She stopped abruptly, almost toppling over. Turning around, she found him a few steps behind her, looking at the ground.

"Ishida-kun?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"I can't go father than this," he said, looking anywhere but at her.

Orihime turned around, and made her way towards him. She stopped, and inquired: "Why not?"

"I made a promise. In exchange for my powers, I made a promise to my father…" he sighed, and fiddled with his glasses. "I can't go any father than this."

Orihime looked at him, concerned at the frown that appeared over his forehead. "You can't go near the Shinigami?" she asked softly, and lifted her hand to brush the frown from his brow.

His hand caught her wrist, stopping her without hurting her. "Please," he asked, not looking at her, "Just _go_, before I do something bad…"

"But, Ishida-kun, why would you--"

"Go!" he pressed, removing his hand from hers as if he had been burned. "I'll see you afterwards, I promise. I promise on my pride as a Quincy."

"Okay," she said, frowning as well, and she left.

She had people to heal.

--------------

He kept his promise.

The next day, he appeared at school, looking as if nothing had happened during the night, as if he hadn't missed school for months. He risked sending her a small smile on his way to the desk, frowning when Orihime didn't return it.

Orihime didn't pay attention to anything around her that morning. Her gaze was either lost in space, or settled on her hands. To a untrained eye, Inoue Orihime was just dazing off as usual. To someone who knew her, Inoue Orihime was on the verge of tears.

Kurosaki tried to question him about his whereabouts for the last months, but he didn't pay him attention. He was more interested in why no one seemed to notice Orihime was feeling really bad. Well, that was a small lie, they did care. Rukia tried approaching her with a soft smile, but Orihime just shook her off with a extremely fake smile, and a cheerful(fake): "I'm okay!"

Something has happened the night before.

Ishida was _certain_ of this. _I shouldn't have left her,_ he scolded himself. But if he had lingered…Recovering his Quincy powers, sensing the reiatsu again, stronger, _tasting_ it during the whole night. There were many warriors in the world that claimed fighting made them horny. Ishida Uryuu had been one of those during the last night. And Inoue, with her concern, her purity, her kindness…he couldn't have followed his instincts. He hadn't been capable of pushing her against a wall and kissing her breathless, as a reunion gift of sorts. He couldn't do that to Inoue.

Yet it was apparent his other approach had also upset her.

Lunch time drifted by, and Ishida gathered his guts, praying to whichever gods that his courage and eloquence wouldn't let him down around her, or that those animalistic instincts of last night resurface. He followed her, but ran into Kurosaki and Rukia on the way. He told himself that this was not eavesdropping, merely gathering information. Plus, they were talking about Inoue.

"Why is she so upset?" Kurosaki asked.

"You don't know?" Rukia questioned, scratching her chin. "While you were training with the Vizards, Urahara-san relieved Inoue of her duties."

"Wha-huh?"

Rukia sighed irritated. "He told her to take a hike, doofus. He told her she was removed from the battlefront."

"But why?"

"Because at that time, Inoue didn't have Tsubaki. Because according to Urahara-san, Captain Unohana and Lieutenant Kotetsu would come to aid in battle, and that meant Inoue was irrelevant. Because, according to Urahara, Inoue was a burden."

"_What_?!" Ichigo blurted, and for once, Ishida agreed with his caveman answer.

Rukia sighed again, a concerned look over-going her expression. "I guess he only made it worse by telling her what he told her last night. Oh that's right, you were unconscious. You were unconscious," she snickered slightly. "Inoue was healing you when Urahara thanked her. She was actually getting her hopes up, I could see, when he told her that the next time it would be better if she stayed home."

So that was it. They made her believe herself to be a burden. Ishida's blood boiled. She left his hiding spot, passed Kurosaki and Rukia, and sped his pace, almost running towards Orihime was. He found her under the bleachers, eating a very tame,--this being Orihime--, sandwich. She lifted her head, saw him, and scooted over. Ishida took a seat, struggling to find words.

_Curse my vocabulary for leaving me now!_

"I'm okay, you know?" Orihime said, soft enough that he almost didn't hear it.

Ishida smirked-scoffed. "No you're not."

Orihime's smile faltered, and she looked at her hands. "No," she said, smiling bitterly. "I'm not…"

"You're not a burden," he blurted. The way her eyes widened, a shocked expression on her face, turning into pain slowly, made him hate himself for his lack of tact.

"They've told you," she whispered.

"They didn't."

"Then, how…"

"Does it matter?" he asked, looking at her with honesty. "Isn't it enough that I don't think you're a burden? You fought well yesterday."

"I didn't fight…"

"You made sure I wasn't hurt. That's fighting to me. That's protecting your comrades. That's not being a burden."

"But you--" she was silenced by his fingers.

"Shh," he shushed softly. "Just trust me on this, Inoue. You're not a burden. Not to me." He removed his hand from her lips, skin tingling.

"They won't let me fight, they won't let me help…"

"Inoue…" He was strong enough to tell her this. "We're both exiles from our old team, don't you think?" She nodded, smiling sadly. "So why don't we make our own team?"

"What?" she asked, her ears perking up almost like a cute little animal.

"Well, I can do the whole offensive fighting, and you can cover defence and healing. If I get hurt, you heal me, and you'd never get hurt, because I won't let them touch you," he finished with a soft growl. There were those animalistic instincts again.

"You…you mean, fighting by your side?" she asked, hopeful light in her eyes.

"Yes. That is exactly what I meant," he answered.

"A team? You and I, as a team?" she kept repeating it as if it were a dream.

"Like a team, just like back in the Soul Society."

"You trust me?" she asks. "You trust me enough to not consider me a burden?"

"I trust you with my life, just like I would have two months ago, or three, or five. Nothing has changed, aside from the fact that you're more powerful now." He was making her smile, and he felt oddly proud about that.

"Oh," she said, making an odd noise in her throat. Two seconds later, she threw herself at him, toppling them over in an embrace. "Team Ishida and Inoue!" she declared to the world, "We will protect the innocent, and…" she looked at him expectantly.

Ishida realised she was expecting him to continue their team's motto. "Um…destroy the evil?"

Orihime coked her head to the right, placing a hand over her lips, weighting the phrase. "Hmm, I guess it's good for now, Ishida-kun. We could work with that later," she said, straightening up. "We'll be like superheroes!" she declared, throwing her hands in the air, making him chuckle under his breath a her antiques. "We need costumes, though…but that's not very important," she waved it off. She looked at him, smiling, and extended a hand. 

"Partners?"

Ishida did not doubt in taking it. "Partners."

-----------------

Three days after the formation of Team IshiNoue (the abbreviation was Inoue's idea), Ishida invited Inoue over for dinner, saying that he had something for her to see.

He made miso soup for her, and had cleaned the apartment from top to bottom. Three times. Orihime arrived on time, wearing her best smile. She devoured the soup with enthusiasm, congratulating Ishida every three gulps on his excellent cooking. He was almost reduced to a mass of stammering mumbles, but thankfully, he managed to contain a bit of dignity inside.

Half-way through desert, Inoue asked him what he wanted her to see. Ishida told her to wait, and went away for a bit. He returned with a package, wrapped in plain brown paper. "For you," he had said, waiting with baited breath for Inoue to open it.

The first thing she did was squeal in happiness. The second action consisted in jumping from her chair, and pressing the present to her chest, twirling it around. "It's a _costume!_" she exclaimed happily.

"Well," he coughed into his hand, "you said we would need costumes. All superheroes need one."

Orihime looked at him tearing up. He had actually taken her seriously. So seriously, that he had even taken the liberty to embroider to 'I' circling each other (for Ishida and Inoue, obviously) into her new, shiny costume.

"Is something wrong?" Ishida asked, concerned.

Orihime shook her head. "Everything is _perfect_," she whispered, and she meant it. "Where can I try it on?" Ishida pointed her to the bathroom.

That's where she analyzed the costume. It was much similar to his own fabricated Quincy outfit, only not. The pants were white, soft cream and blue lines on the outer lines of her legs. They hugged her legs nicely, and of course, were tied by a zipper, no such thing as buttons. The upper part consisted of a sleeveless top, white again, and a jacket with the same design as the pants, with the insignia embroidered into the left shoulder. The fabric used was neither too thick nor too thin. Enough to keep her warm in winter and cool in summer. It was so perfect and fit her so well that she wanted to cry. In her haste to get changed she didn't even hear the bell ring.

She exited the bathroom, ready to twirl around in a pose, only what she found was another, very unfamiliar person in the room. The man swept his gaze over her form, and looked back at a glowering Ishida.

"Who is she?" he asked.

"That's Inoue," Ishida replied. "She's my partner."

"Partner?" the man spat surprised. He looked from Ishida to her, and then narrowed his eyes. "I need to speak to you in private."

Inoue was left behind as Ishida joined his father in the kitchen. Ryuuken wasted no time. 

"You're in love with her."

Ishida raised his chin defiantly, as if to say 'so what if I am?', but answered: "She's not a Shinigami."

"I know that. She doesn't smell like one, but she doesn't smell like a mortal either." Ryuuken looked at his son. "If either of you get killed, I am not going to hold your shoulder while you wail for the loss."

And that was about as much of an approval he was going to get from his cold father.

-------------

Post-fight horniness was rising again, and, Ishida acknowledged, Inoue looked too good to be legal in that suit he had made for her.

What on Earth had possessed him to make that suit, he had no idea. Maybe it was just another method of torturing himself. Or maybe it was marking the territory, what with the insignia. He unconsciously licked his lips, trying not to pay attention to her as she healed the scratches and cuts on his front.

"Did you see their faces?" she was asking amused. "I thought Kurosaku-kun's jaw was going to fall off when I told them we were partner team IshiNoue. And Matsumoto-san looked so envious of the suit!" she giggled softly, letting him space to sit up once she was ready.

They had returned to her apartment a few minutes before, for healing up and food. Orihme was ecstatic, and Ishida just wanted to pine her to a solid surface somewhere, and…that's where he forced himself to stop. Inoue deserved someone better, something better than this. But if she kept it up with her shining eye, he'd goddamn _do it._

"Ishida-kun was _so_ brave, fighting like a super superhero. Like Rukia-san said once, we kicked some ass, didn't we?" she laughed, making Ishida lick his lips again. Then she quieted down, and he thought he was on safe territory again. "I'm really happy we're partners," she said, smiling while looking at her hands. She whispered softly the last word, so soft that he almost missed it, "Uryuu."

He shuddered. _That's it!_ Before he could stop his treacherous body, he had Inoue on the futon, under him.

"Ishi--" she started.

"Shh," he said, "Inoue. I am going to kiss you right now."

Her eyes widened, and then she smiled. "I was hoping you would, Ury--" He didn't give her time to finish before pressing his lips to hers.

Oh, but it felt better than Heaven. Her lips were pliant under his, soft and warm, and parted enough for him to breathe her in.

He was burning her with the kiss. It was her first kiss, and it was _wonderful_ in the way that no one but Ishida could have managed. He was consuming her soul lying himself bare in front of her, and she _knew_. She knew it like she knew the Sun rose in the East. _He loves me._

It was like having her eyes being opened to the universe. Not only her eyes, her heart, her everything. And she let him enter her heart, deciding that yes. She loved him back.

Because he had trusted her, he had protected her, he had kept his promises. He was her partner, her friend, her favourite person on Earth right now. He pulled away, resting his head on the place between her neck and shoulders, out of breath.

"God…" he breathed. "_Orihime_." 

"Yes, Uryuu?" she asked softly, runing her fingers over his back.

"I love you."

"I know." She smiled. "I love you too."

"Great," he breathed out, chuckling slightly. "Good." He laughed softly, almost not believing it himself. "Perfect."

And as she stood with him cradled in her arms, thoroughly kissed, Orihime decided that it was. It was perfect.

::end:::  
::imagine you get a second chance at life::


End file.
